Chinese Dumping Off-The-Road Tires Cited In DOC Report

The Chinese government increased the level of subsidies for its off-the-road tire (OTR) manufacturers in the 2014-15 time period, selling OTR tires at less-than-fair value in the U.S. market. That’s based on a federal Department of Commerce (DOC) report released last week.

Under U.S. law, DOC will, if requested, periodically review the level of dumping and/or subsidization under any existing countervailing duty or antidumping duty order.

The existing OTR tire pricing monitor orders were put into place as the result of a petitions filed by tire manufacturer Titan International, Inc., and the United Steelworkers union.

The DOC’s issuance of these results updates the level of duties that are imposed on OTR tire imports to counteract the most recent levels of subsidization and dumping identified by the DOC.

“The identified levels of subsidization have increased dramatically since they were last analyzed by the DOC,” noted a press release issued by Titan. “Specifically, the DOC found subsidy levels, which previously ranged from 2.52% to 5.65%, to be 34.46% to 46.01% in the recent review. The DOC has also continued to find that the Chinese producers are selling at significant amounts below their costs. The Department of Commerce found in the dumping review that OTR tires produced by major Chinese producers were sold in the U.S. at levels below fair value.”

The release specified that the “practical effect of these findings is two-fold. For entries of merchandise that were covered by the reviews, the DOC will issue liquidation instructions for (U.S.) Customs to assess duties equal to the amount finally found (subject to any judicial review); if more than the cash deposits posted at the time of entry, importers are liable for the difference plus interest from the date of entry… (and) the DOC will provide instructions to U.S. Customs to collect cash deposits on incoming entries from China reflecting the final rates found in this latest completed review.”

Maurice Taylor, Titan’s Chairman, thanked the government agencies involved “for their diligence in pursuing these reviews. These results confirm that imports of OTR tires from China continue to be subsidized and dumped and harm U.S. producers of OTR tires in the U.S. marketplace.”

“I believe Titan will see a positive impact in our aftermarket business as a result of these determinations,” Taylor added. “On behalf of our shareholders and workers, we are pleased that the U.S. government’s investigations have confirmed what we are seeing in the U.S. marketplace.”